Hey everyone,
I'm going to be honest with you all. I have multiple reasons that, over the last few months, I've only been giving you guys one or two chapters a month.

And most of them are weak,

Venquine1990
PS. Sorry that this update is a few days late. I had the chapters ready, but got distracted and didn't realize that it was already September until today (02-09-2023).


Chapter 55
We're Both Mothers

14th of July 1996
Radiant Garden
Harry's POV

Poppy is an utter Godsend.

I really have no other way to describe the woman and all she has done for me this past month.

Either she came to my home, so I could be close incase my baby girl needed to feed, or I felt sure that she'd be down for a nap and would meet my Regent at either her house or her office.

And over the course of the last month, the woman found a most peculiar, yet helpful way to let me vent where and when I needed.

Similarly to when we met a month ago, she and I would start a simple conversation and it would slowly transcend into talking about anything that might have been bothering me.

Whether this bothered me several years ago or only the other week didn't matter to Poppy. She would be a listening ear, give advice and show me a side to the story that I never thought of.

Yet she never took the side of those that hurt me.

Whether I talked about when I was eight, realized that I was outgrowing the cupboard under the stairs and grew to resent the knowledge that I would never be allowed a room of my own.

Or talked about how much I worried about feeding Erethea while waiting in line at a grocery store and deciding to skip the shopping for my baby girl.

It didn't matter what the subject was, how insignificant some might consider it or whether some people might want to reprimand me for bothering the woman with nonsense.

In fact, whenever I brought up this statement, Poppy would tell me the same thing over and over.

"It's that kind of mindset that made it so hard for you to open up before you met Lea.

But you know better now and are becoming more like the Potter you were always meant to be. You will never be the person you would have been if your parents or father had the chance to raise you, but you're making them proud.

Both with how you take care of their grandchild – and how you are overcoming these mental hurdles and emotional weaknesses."

The woman might not try to sugarcoat the facts or compliment me, simply because she believes that to be the best course of action.

But it's her harsh honesty – and the fact that she often sounds so incredibly caring at the same time – that I really appreciate about these meetings.

Yet at the same time, especially when we meet in her office, I can tell that the woman seems to be hiding something – or is deciding to procrastinate something important.

I noticed it about two weeks into the month and it became more and more obvious as the weeks went by.

Yet because of the biggest reasons for my visits – to clear my heart, so I can properly take care of my little girl – I appreciate her decision, even as I wonder what this might all be about.

And these thoughts – together with the instinctive desire to keep checking to make sure that my little girl is well-covered and supported in her little carrier bag – course through my mind as I wander the streets after another session.

Something amazing had happened earlier, when both dad and Poppy confirmed that Rhea might soon be ready to start Tummy Time, as the woman called it.

This was apparently a progress where I was meant to lie my baby girl on a blanket and help her learn to lift her head or even turn it the other way on her own accord.

The fact that my little girl, who is only a month and a half at this point, might soon start doing so fills me with relief as it proves that the bones and muscles in her neck are growing nice and strong.

And that's something that every mother loves to hear.

Right now, just to get my health back and because my baby girl is sleeping peacefully while strapped to my front, I'm walking around the neighborhood between my own home and Poppy's office.

"Oh hey there!

Hold on a second!"

A female voice sounds from behind me and I turn my head while I slow down my pace.

My eyes widen when I realize that the one to call out to me was Della Duck, who Lea told me had been stuck on the moon for the last several decades.

What shocks me is that, other than the metal prosthetic left leg, the duck seems to have already readjusted herself very well.

Yet then I realize that the duck has been back since the day after my daughter was born. Still, I yet again feel my awe for her grow a bit.

Yet when she reaches me, she proves that she hasn't either fully recovered or readjusted. The duck had run over after spotting me from a few blocks away and now she's leaning on her knees and panting a little, trying to regain her breath.

I turn so that we are face to face and check to make sure that my little girl is still asleep, that she didn't get woken from the shout.

Then I remember that Poppy placed a silencing charm on the carrier bag before I left her office earlier on and feel like sweat-dropping.

"Hi, my name is Della. I heard from my boys that you moved here a few months ago. I've been wanting to meet with you for a while, but – you know – I've been a bit busy.

To be honest, I was thinking of organizing a meeting between the mothers of the Garden. You know, so we can, I don't know, share ideas and talk to each other on how we raised our kids.

I mean, I knew that my boys were growing up without me as I tried to get back to them, but still.

And the fact that they grew up here and only spent a few months a year in Disney Town kind of makes me feel even more out of my doubt, you know?"

Poppy had met up with Della a few days after Lea saved her from her time on the moon.

The woman had told dad and me that, while she was healthy, and had already admitted to feeling out of her debt on a new world, she also had the social energy of a teenager.

My Regent had even told us: "To be honest, the way she talks reminds me of the twins and how energetic they get when they pulled a Great Hall prank."

I had, at the time, thought that the woman might be over-exaggerating. But the female duck's opening statements and the fact that she tries to say this while still somewhat breathing deeply proves that she hadn't.

If anything, I now feel as if she might have under-exaggerating, instead.

I rub the back of my head while Della continues to catch her breath and mutters: "You know, I'm honored and I'm sure it's a great idea.

It's just – I'm completely new to this and just going by the advice of others and my own instincts. After all, until Sirius got the chance to adopt me, I grew up pretty unloved."

I had expected Della to look either annoyed, shocked or insulted at my statement. Yet instead she smiles at me and states:

"Don't worry. That's the other reason I wanted to hold this meeting. I figured it could help us both. I figured we could both grow from the experience.

By the way, can I –?"

The duck seems to hesitate and falter as she talks. Yet the look of awe and care that adorns her face as she looks down at the carrier bag attached to my front brings a smile to my face.

Yet as I look down myself, an instinct that seems to have existed since the first time I got to feed my little girl comes up again.

And as it tells me that I need to get somewhere private – the voice sometimes sounding like dad and sometimes like Mrs. Weasley – Erethea's face starts to scrunch up.

"Hey, do you live nearby? I think my little girl needs to be fed."

I barely get the words out of my mouth before the female duck grabs my arm.

A second later, I try to keep my upper body up straight to keep my carrier bag upright as Della tries to pull me along.

And when I try to explain this to her, she screeches to a halt, lets go of my arm and starts to hurriedly apologize, almost tripping over her own words.

I smile at this female duck, who is now reminding me of an incredible mix of Mrs. Weasley's kind heart and the twins' energy.

I gently reassure her and just repeat my request for her to guide me to her place so I can feed my little girl in private.

Della nods and guides me around the corner from where she called out to me earlier. Then she puts a key in the first front door around said corner.

"I know that Uncle Scrooge has that huge manor on the other side of town, but Donald and I left home years before I had my eggs.

And I've been living in this one-room, self-build hut for so long while on the moon, Uncle Scrooge and I worried that I might not feel comfortable or be able to regain my footing in such a large place.

So he bought me this place and I promised to move back in with him in a year or so. Also, can you believe that I don't have to pay him any rent?

I mean, it's Scrooge McDuck!"

As she tells me this, she guides me over to a couch in the living room. Yet because the couch is set under a window, I feel somewhat uncomfortable.

So while I pull my wand out of the little side-pocket that dad attached to the carrier bag, I motion for the curtains and ask her if she'd mind.

Della tilts her head in confusion and I ask her if she'd mind it if I cast magic. The duck's eyes widen and she starts all over again.

"Are you kidding?

I mean, I learned from your Regent that you guys are from a world that is divided between those with magic and those without and that you lived in the former.

But I've hardly hung out – I mean, no, not at all. Do whatever you want."

By now I actually feel deeply uncomfortable. Though this isn't because of the way the female duck seems to go on tangent every time she opens her beak.

It's because, ever since we turned the corner, my baby girl has been crying out in hunger and I really just want to feed her.

So I quickly use magic to close the curtains behind me.

I put my wand away again and pull the carrier bag off of me. And while I lie my sweet Erethea down on my lap and make sure to support her neck and head with one hand, I pull down the zipper of my vest with my other hand.

Della looks at me shocked and confused and her eyes widen when she sees me pull up my top and guide Rhea's mouth over to my chest.

I have to admit, ever since the night before Rhea was born, my chest has been feeling as if the ribs near my chest are full of fluid instead of bone.

Thankfully, while this makes it feel as if said ribs are somewhat pressing against my skin from within, it doesn't make it hard for me to breath or hurt me otherwise.

It just feels somewhat uncomfortable most of the time, except for the ten or so minutes after Erethea has been fed.

Because of this I am very glad that my baby gets hungry every two hours. And I can only hope that the sensation will lessen as time goes on and Erethea will get less hungry.

"Is – is it wrong that – that I'm jealous?"

Della's voice is actually almost soundless as she asks me this. She also has a really disgruntled look on her face and her beak is even slightly twisted.

I get the feeling that, if not for her fascination with watching me feed my little girl, she would have turned her head away in shame.

I give the duck a gentle smile and decide to come clean, simply because she wanted to organize something to help both of us even before she ever met me.

"To be honest, I feel somewhat jealous of you, Mrs. Weasley and everyone else who has teenagers for kids. You guys either have experience or have kids who are already somewhat independent.

It's different for Lea and I. Lea spent several years as a being without a heart and I grew up with people who hated the very fact that I was even born, just because I had magic.

To them I was the living evidence that something they despised, people with powers they didn't have, existed and they hated that, and thus me.

So combine that with the fact that Erethea is so young and dependent and – well, as much as I love her, I'm also very glad that she sleeps so much.

Though that's not because, when she's afraid, I'm worried that I might do something wrong. It's because, as unrealistic as it might sound, to me, it proves that she trusts me to take good care of her, the sweet little angel.

And yeah, the fact that I have Mrs. Weasley, dad and Poppy helping and advising me also makes me feel more comfortable with this whole situation.

Also, just like my very existence kept proving those Muggles that they'd never have the gifts of my people, her very existence reminds me of how much my life has changed in the last year or so.

After all, only 10, almost 11 months ago, I was worrying about the – the horrible person who took me my parents and the fact that my own world's leaders thought I was a liar.

And yet, here I am, months later, not worrying about my life or that of my friends – but about whether or not I am doing right by my newborn daughter."

By now, Erethea is done sucking on my bud and I've put my cloths back right.

Della smiles at me and her face is full of empathic understanding.

Ever since I heard her story from Lea and Poppy, I already felt a somewhat distant connection with her. And even in these few minutes of talking and sitting together, I feel as if that connection has solidified and gotten stronger.

And so, because of that, I make sure to secure Erethea in my arms before I reach her out to Della and asks her if she might want to burp my daughter.

The female duck's eyes cover most of her head, yet they widen even more as I ask this of her. And while she has been mostly excited and energetic for the majority of our time together, she proves that she can be gentle and careful as well.

She reaches out and takes hold of my daughter as if Erethea is one of her uncle's most precious and priceless artefacts.

And with incredible precaution, the duck moves Erethea's head to lie on her shoulder and taps her on several spot across her back.

And when a light burp escapes my daughter's throat, we smile at each other in love over the little girl.

Della might have three boys who are young adults and I might have a one-month old daughter, but in the end

We're both mothers.


Hey everyone,
Okay, I need you guys to be honest with me. Did I treat Della Duck with proper respect in this chapter? Or did I overdo it at any point in this chapter?
Let me know,

Venquine1990